Ryuuzaki Alwyas had Secrets
by Kuroda-san
Summary: Ryuuzaki always kept his past a secret. He shares on of his more memorable ones. Sortof fluff oneshot
1. Ryuuzaki always had secrets

This is my first DN fanfic. Kinda something that just came to me.  
**Disclaimer: **Death Note and its characters are not mine...but oh how I wish they were.

* * *

L always had secrets. His name was the most well kept secret that he had, but there were many others that he had. For instance, Mayu-san was a confectioner, and rather well known for her sweets. She was a secret that many people knew, but no one knew that he knew her once upon a time back when she was also a candidate for the elusive position of "L". 

Whammy House was an orphanage where children were raised to potentially become next in line to become the greatest detective that graced this earth; L. When the current L had lost his life, or wished to retire, the next most capable student would assume the position, and L would live on.

Ryuuzaki had always had an unquenchable craving for sweet foods, and at the orphanage he was well satisfied with what he was provided, and didn't question the sweets as he continued with his studies with a surprising ease. This is how he met Mayu-san-or Mayu-chan as she was called at the time.

He saw her once or twice around the orphanage, pleats of dark, shining hair hanging around her like a veil as she whipped around the corner and hurried out of sight. Further research had told him that she had a high IQ, great sense of reason, and was marked down as a possible mute. She had come from a Japanese family, and was nearly killed in a tsunami that destroyed her home, and her parents. She had been raised in a Japan orphanage until she was about seven, and that is where she finally showed signs of higher intellect. Halfway in between the age of seven and eight she was transferred to Whammy House, where she became one of the few girls to be considered for the honored position. The main problem with this was that she wouldn't, and possibly couldn't speak.

He met Mayu in the kitchen, leaning over a bowl of batter that smelled strongly of strawberries, his favorite. She looked startled as she watched him enter, flour streaked across her pale face, he long black hair pulled into a large bun on he back of her head. The frilly apron she wore had stains of oil, egg, flour, and other ingredients that had spilled over onto her.

"You are Mayu-chan, correct?" he asked.

She looked up from the bowl once again, looked at Ryuuzaki, and nodded.

"Are you the one who bakes all these sweets?"

Another nod was his answer.

"Can you talk?"

Again, another nod came in response.

"Will you speak to me?"

This time she shook her head. She pulled a round cake pan from off of the side counter, and began pouring the bright pink batter into the pre-greased pan, and the placing the pan in the heated oven. Quickly, and quietly she washed off her hands, dried them and took a seat next him at the breakfast bar, pulling a pen and pad of paper toward her she began to write.

When she was finished she pushed the pad toward hi, and in very neat penmanship she wrote:

_No. I don't speak to anyone. I never have, and I don't find it necessary to do so .I know what they think, and I don't mind that they think this I'm not a mute, and I could speak, if I wanted to. If you want me to speak to you, then give me a reason to._

He looked back up at her as she pulled her hair loose and it fell over her back like a waterfall, the ends nearly reaching halfway down to the floor.

"Ok, Mayu-chan," he replied to the note. "I will have to try to do so. I am Ryuuzaki, by the way."

Over the next several weeks Ryuuzaki and Mayu conversed in their own ways, Ryuuzaki speaking aloud, and Mayu writing on her pad of paper. They would always meet in the kitchen where Mayu was always cooking something, usually something sweet to suit Ryuuzaki's sweet tooth. She wouldn't ever talk, though she filled up enough paper to almost write a book.

One day, after Mayu had produced a lovely strawberry tart, Ryuuzaki sat nibbling on the sweet confection.

"Mayu-chan, what would you do if you became the next L?" he asked, absently, twirling the fork between his thumb and fore finger.

Her response was:

_I have no desire to become L. I am only here because Rodger thinks I'm something special, like the rest of you._

"Yes, that may be true, but it would be interesting, wouldn't it?"

_Maybe so, but I'd rather cook. I do not wish to spend the rest of my life chasing down the scum of the world._

"What of your parents though? They would have been proud of you if you became L." he stated.

"No."

Ryuuzaki stopped for a second, the fork that had been perched between his fingers clattered to the plate, and he looked around the kitchen before he turned to Mayu.

"No?" he repeated her.

"No. My parents were criminals-I've read the files- and they would have hated me if I had become the next L," she spoke. Her voice was quite and soft, and slightly rough, exactly what it should be after not using it in such a long time and it held the faintest Japanese accent.

That was the first time she spoke, but it wasn't the last time though, and it was only Ryuuzaki she would speak to. If someone else were to enter the kitchen during one of their discussions she would silence herself immediately. It wasn't surprising though, she was reluctant to talk to Ryuuzaki sometimes.

Their talks taught them about each other, or as much about each other as they wanted the other to know. Ryuuzaki never confirmed his real name, any details relating to his parents, or where he originated from. Mayu never said anything of her past, about her life at the Japanese orphanage, and she would completely clam up if her parents were mentioned. Ryuuzaki learned that she was three years younger then he was, and she wished to become a confectioner rather then the elusive detective. Ryuuzaki in turn told her that he greatly desired to have the position of L, and had been told by Rodger that he was at the front of the list should anything happen to the current L.

Over several months Ryuuzaki and Mayu became close, talking amongst them selves in the kitchen, Mayu cooking some sweet food or another, and Ryuuzaki the first to try the sugary confection. Time would have it though, and they eventually had to go their separate ways, Ryuuzaki off to become L, and Mayu went back to becoming the silent girl always cooking something in the kitchen.

The day L left Whammy House he was greeted by Mayu in the hall, on the other side of the house from the kitchen. She held out a bright pink box that emitted a strong scent of strawberries, and a folded white note.

"What's this for?" he asked, knowing very well it was a farewell gift.

"It's for you L-sama," she replied. Her voice had matured so much, and it was an airy, mature soprano, where it had once been rough and quite.

"Apparently so, Mayu-chan. You may still call me Ryuuzaki. You don't need to be so formal with me."

She didn't reply, and it became obvious as to why. Rodger had just exited a room behind me.

"We have to leave soon," he said before turning off down the hall toward the front hall.

"Yes. I know I can still call you that, but I choose not to," she paused for a few moments, her gray eyes darting around, and her bottom lip caught between her teeth. "Well you better be going."

"Yes. I suppose so."

Just before he turned to leave she had reached out, placed a soft hand on my cheek, stood on the tips of her toes, and placed a soft kiss to his lips. She was gone before he opened his eyes; the last sight was of her long hair whipping around the corner, and that was the last he saw of her.


	2. It's been a while

Remember how I said this would be a one shot? I lied. I decided to write more. Rating will go up if I continue to write, so stick in there. We're gonna have a mulit-parter on our hands.

* * *

He often found himself wondering what had happened to the little Japanese girt at the Whammy House who was so willing gave him her first kiss, as well as take his own. It wasn't until he started working on the Kira case until he found out.

It was mid-morning when Matsuda trotted through the door, holding a box of something that smelled absolutely wonderful. It was in a cheery pink box with a thin white string tied around it like a present. He placed it in front of Ryuuzaki, who had his thumb perched between his teeth, and eyes wide with innocent wonder.

"It's from the new confectionary that opened down the street from my house," Matsuda said, answering the unasked question. "The place gave off a very appetizing smell, so I picked this up."

The detective beamed with pride, hoping that he's done something good.

Ryuuzaki looked at the box, peering at the label that read "Strawberry Batter" around a small, chubby strawberry. He pushed the box aside, for favor of typing the stores name into a search engine.

H found the stores website and clicked on the 'about the owner' link. Up popped a picture of a small Japanese woman, with hair the reached her ankles. It was Mayu-chan from back at the Whammy House. How delightful to fine her at such a convenient distance from where he was currently located.

He looked up at Matsuda who looked as though he was thinking he'd done something wrong since Ryuuzaki had pushed the box away. That was until...

"Thank you Matsuda," came from Ryuuzaki who began to pick at the large slice of strawberry cake with a satisfied smile on his face.

The next day he had told Watari to tell the others they could have the day off, which was something they needed.

He planned on stopping in on his dear old friend, but first he had to find something. He dug through a suitcase of his, searching for the worn, folded with note that was given to him the last day he saw the girl, that last day in the Whammy House hallway. He found it finally, unfolded it, smoothed it out and reread it for the hundredth time.

i "Ryuuzaki-san,

I am happy you are going to become L; that you finally get to give your genius to the world, and help the others you have always wished to help. Not so far from now I will also be leaving, to start my own life, my own business. Now that the only reason I stayed is leaving, there is no place for me anymore. I hope that we will meet one day.

-Nezumi Mayou" /i 

She had given him her real name, which meant that she trusted him enough to do such a risky thing.

With that thought in mind, he set out. On his feet were a worn out pair if running shoes, and over his white cotton shirt he wore a simple black windbreaker, unzipped with his hands stuffed carelessly into the pockets.

It took only about half an hour to get there, with two bus rides and a half a block to walk, he stood out side the pale pink colored shop, staring up at the large strawberry on the sign.

Through the window he could see a few costumers at the counter either picking up their orders, or dropping them off. Further back he could see a woman, just a few years younger then him, long black hair tied back in a braid that fell to her mid calf. She was holding a piping tube, concentrating as she decorated what looked like a wedding cake.

With a sigh he entered the store with a little chime from the bell on the door, his eyes instantly darting back to where he saw the woman, meeting a pair dark gray eyes that warmed with a smile as she spotted him.

"Ryuuzaki-san," she said in welcome as she motioned for him to follow her.

"Mayu-san," he returned the greeting, following her in his usual slouched poster.

She led him into a large office with a glowing computer screen, a messy desk covered with order forms and business cards, and two large leather chairs.

"Please sit," she said, motioning to the chair in front of the desk while she sat in the chair behind the desk.

"I see you've opened up you own confectionary, Mayu-san, Congratulations."

"Of course. You have been praised on the news and the news papers around the world for your outstanding work as L. Congratulations to you as well." She smiled, her faintly tinted lips curling at the corners.

"Indeed."

They talked for hours, talking about things they had done since they had last seen each other. They talked about the times the spent together at Whammy House, and the talked about things yet to come.

"Oh no. Look at the time. We've talked nearly the whole day away, Ryuuzaki."

"So it seems. I must get back before Watari calls. I have work to resume tomorrow."

"Of course, Ryuuzaki. Please come by again. It was so nice seeing you again. Tell Watari I said hello as well."

"I'll do that." Just before he turned to leave he caught her arm, spinning her so that she faced him. "I almost forgot..."

He bent down and placed a soft kiss to her lips, his hand smoothing over her hair, his eyes fluttering closed for just a moment.

He left her standing there, her eyes wide open in shock, and her fingers pressed lightly to her lips.

"I'll be seeing you soon, Mayu-san."


End file.
